


Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water...

by upset_and_confused



Category: Naruto
Genre: Blood and Injury, Declarations Of Love, Emotionally Cold Character Loves Warm Sunny Character, Hurt/Comfort, Kissing, M/M, Minor Injuries, Stitches, bubble baths
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-03
Updated: 2018-05-03
Packaged: 2019-05-01 21:04:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,685
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14529150
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/upset_and_confused/pseuds/upset_and_confused
Summary: Zabuza works somewhere secret and dangerous and Haku might miss him like crazy when he's on a mission but that doesn't mean Zabuza can skip any treatment and stay up all day waiting for him to come home.





	Like a Bridge Over Troubled Water...

**Author's Note:**

> The best rare pair and you better love it. I really like the idea of Zabuza being hopelessly in love with Haku he is just a big stupid man who can't say it. I also reference the fact that he works with a certain white haired ninja who has a very loud boyfriend, let me believe they are all best friends, okay? Find me at [MagicalWeirdism](http://magicalweirdism.tumblr.com) for more Naruto and rare pairs!

There were a lot of nice things about living with Zabuza. He made good money so Haku wasn’t hungry all the time anymore. He had a pretty big collection of movies and books so when Haku was not at work he was never bored. He was extremely handsome and very good in bed so, shallow as it may be, Haku was always thoroughly satisfied in all physical aspects these days. If there was anything at all that Haku was opposed to about living with Zabuza it was the fact that the man seemed much more focused on taking care of Haku than he was on himself. Haku was the kind who would rather starve to death than see someone he cared for go hungry, he would work for days to make sure his person slept, he would die so his person could live. Interested in that devotion as Zabuza seemed, he made it exceptionally hard to provide that kind of care. It was infuriating. 

“You have to go to sleep.” 

“Nice to see you too.” 

Zabuza was on the couch watching a movie that seemed to be more explosions than plot. He was nearly asleep as it was and Haku  _ knew _ why he was still awake. The man had been away for three days. Haku had missed him like a limb and had only seen him or heard from him over the phone. He had been lonely and sad for three days in which no one complained that the apartment was far too cold or that the pots and pans were always clean or that the bathroom smelled too much like lavender. Haku had missed his… Friend? Lover? Companion? Zabuza didn’t like labels and Haku was too pleased with the situation they had now to make too much of a fuss about wanting to know what they were. 

“Are you my sugar daddy?” Haku had teased when he had first woken up in bed with Zabuza after being brought home from his job, fed, and fucked so well his body was still shivering. 

“I don’t know about that.” Zabuza had said through a yawn, looking at Haku with a tired lust in his eyes, “I guess I could be your master if you’re interested,” He mused, reaching to wrap an arm around Haku and tug him close, “You can be my tool to use as I will.” 

Haku had giggled, “Ask me that again when you’re balls deep in me and we’ll see.” 

Beyond that there had been no effort by either of them to define the relationship. Haku was fine with that he supposed, Zabuza had a secretive and demanding job, he didn’t need a boyfriend or anything. What he clearly needed, however, was a babysitter to shoo him to bed and make him eat something green once and a fucking while.

“You should not stay up to see me when you have been working for so long, it’s not healthy and I can survive without hearing you complain that I keep the house too cold.” Haku was not trying to be unkind but seeing Zabuza so utterly exhausted was grating on his last nerve. Why did the dumb man never take care of his over muscled body?

Zabuza pouted up at him which, between his lack of eyebrows, he must have forgotten to draw them on today, and his tired as hell expression didn’t have quite the effect Haku assumed he was going for. “Maybe I can’t survive without talking to you. And it is cold in here, now that you bring it up.” 

Haku rolled his eyes and stomped off to fix the temperature. He did not enjoy his job as a waiter and he knew he didn’t have to do it but he refused to rely purely on Zabuza or anyone else ever again. His father had accidentally raised a very independent young man when he tried to kill him. 

The thermostat set and his clothes changed he came back out to the living room, expecting to find Zabuza asleep on the couch as he normally was but the living room was empty. Odd. Perhaps he had actually listened to Haku and gone to sleep. Haku was pleasantly surprised for all of five minutes when he heard soft cursing and saw Zabuza coming down the hall from the bathroom. 

“Why are you giving me that look?” He asked, his voice thick with sleep. 

Haku wanted to scream, “You are beyond tired, you were away for three days this time and I missed you quite a bit too but your desire to tease me should not keep you from getting rest!” He stormed toward the man, yes he was aching to hold him and be with him for more than a few minutes on a video or voice call but Zabuza Needed. To. Sleep!

He opened his mouth to demand that the man lay down and reached to grab his hand to drag him to bed but before he could do either of those things the taller man wrapped around him like a blanket. He smelled like the sea salt and lavender candles Haku liked and felt so warm and familiar. “I missed you so damn bad.” Zabuza sounded almost like he was going to cry as he held onto Haku. “I know, I know I need to sleep and I know you get tired of me waiting around for you to get home when I need to rest or eat or any of the other things normal people need but I need you too.” He was heavy and all that muscle was so soft under the arms that Haku slowly wrapped around the larger man. “It’s so damn stupid and I know you think I got better things to do than wait around on you but I promise,” He pulled back and looked down at Haku, his eyes wet with exhaustion, glazed over and nearly swallowed by the dark circles under them. “I ain’t got a thing better in the world than you and I don’t tell you that enough if you still think sleep is something I should be doing instead of welcoming you home.” 

Haku was still, his face slack and his mouth open. Zabuza never talked like this, the last time he had was… “Did you get hurt?” Haku demanded, growling softly when the larger man tried to shy away. “Jesus, Zabu.” He sighed, grabbing hold of the man’s shirt to lift it, the other was too tired to oppose him too much and Haku gasped when he saw the bandage. It was larger than his hand and there was a dull rusty color to it, like a lot of blood had seeped through and dried. Haku took a deep shuddering breath and took Zabuza by the hand. 

“You are going to be the death of me.” He muttered as they arrived in the bathroom. It was set up with candles on the sink and back of the toilet and the ledges on the tub. There was a steaming hot bath complete with bubbles and a little box of caramel and hazelnut candies laid out. Haku was too worried about Zabuza to even take in the romantic gesture, shoving him down onto the seat of the toilet and very gently peeling back the bandage. Zabuza, for his part, sat in silence either from shame or exhaustion. Haku privately hoped it was shame but suspected it was the fact that he was nearly asleep at this point. He set to work either way, tenderly cleaning the wound and grabbing the box of medical supplies out from under the sink. 

“You didn’t even get this properly stitched up.” Haku whispered, more to himself than the man who he was going to be tending. 

“Hatake didn’t either.” Zabuza muttered, referring to one of his many partners. Haku hadn’t failed to notice that Zabuza almost always came home with more injuries when he was with Hatake than anyone else. They were both horrible show offs and tended not to notice that they were bleeding out until too late. 

“Yes and I am sure Iruka is giving him an earful at home right now,” Haku shot Zabuza a look, “Just be glad I don’t have his lungs.” They sat in silence as Haku started stitching slowly, making sure he got it all right and even. “Did you mean it?” 

“Hm?” Zabuza never made a sound when he was being stitched and Haku appreciated it but now he needed to talk. 

“What you said,” He muttered, wiping away a dribble of fresh blood with his thumb, “That I’m the best thing you have in the whole world?” He looked up under his long lashes and saw Zabuza looking down at him, his tired eyes looked almost wet in the candle light. 

“I’m mean to you.” Zabuza whispered, “Don’t argue,” He said when Haku opened his mouth to do just that, “I… Jesus this is not something I say, I love you, Haku. I’m mean and cold and I know all of that and I don’t… treat you the way you deserve to be treated.” 

Haku kept his head ducked, his nose sniffling as he tried to ignore the emotion threatening to well up inside him. 

“Hey, hey come here.” Zabuza reached to tip his head back and smiled tiredly at him, “Look at that face.” He sighed, rubbing a thumb along Haku’s cheekbone and catching a tea streaking down. “Fuckig hell, look at you, too pretty to be with me and too sweet to be with me.” He smiled, so, so tired and weak, “Why the fuck are you with me?” 

Haku snipped the thread from his stitches, tugges his shirt off his head and let the pants fall away from his hips, he reached for Zabuza, stepping back into the water, still hot and still foaming with bubbles. “Come here, Master Zabuza,” He said, his watery voice probably making the words sound a little less sensual than he meant them to sound, “And let me show you how much I love you too.” 


End file.
